Pep Guardiola commends Rodri with immense pride, calling him a standout player for Man City

LONDON – Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has lauded his midfielder Rodri, who was recently named the Ballon d’Or winner. Guardiola expressed his admiration for Rodri as he gears up for his team's League Cup fourth-round match against Tottenham Hotspur on October 30th.

City have had a perfect October, winning five consecutive matches in the English Premier League and the Champions League, although a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers and a slim 1-0 triumph over Southampton over the weekend would have been some cause for concern.

The pre-match talk, however, was all about midfielder Rodri, who is currently injured.

“What can I say? First, to congratulate him and all his family and their friends, it’s incredible news for him and for all of us,” said Guardiola.

“All Manchester City, our fans, we are so proud of him. We could never have imagined this years ago, that one (City) player could receive this prestigious award. We are so delighted to share it with him and hopefully, it can give him energy to recover well for next season and be with us again.”

The Spaniard also had kind words for Erik ten hag, who was sacked by Manchester United on Oct 28.

“I wish him all the best, he and his family, and he’s going to come back stronger,” he added.

“He knows, I know, everybody knows that our job depends on results. When the results are not good enough, always we are on the verge of staying or being sacked.”

On the pitch, City now have a four-match away run before the international break in November, and will face a different test following two straight wins and clean sheets at the Etihad.

Guardiola would have noted that his side had not been successful in the League Cup in recent years, as they lost in the quarter-final stage or earlier in two of the past three seasons.

Last campaign, City exited in the third round so to get to this stage is already an improvement, but the manager would be aiming for more trophies alongside their Premier League title defence.

This would probably be a good time to play Spurs, who suffered a 1-0 loss to Crystal Palace over the weekend and are down in eighth in the Premier League standings.

Manager Ange Postecoglou was also fortunate to get to the League Cup fourth round, as his side were two minutes away from a shock loss to Coventry City in September before Djed Spence and Brennan Johnson secured a 2-1 win.

The Spurs boss could welcome back his influential captain Son Heung-min following injury.

“He seems to be progressing well so, hopefully, he’ll be available,” said the Australian.